CANDLES BURNING

Seven-year-old Calliope "Calley" Dakin opens the story with a horrific description of how two women tortured and murdered her father. Afterwards, she is taken by her emotionally abusive mother, Roberta Ann, to Pensacola, where her talent for speaking to the dead comes to the fore. Carrington MacDuffie has her work cut out for her as the story switches abruptly from the past to the present. MacDuffie portrays the child Calley with a little girl voice and a mild Southern accent yet still manages to convey a child who is smarter than her years. Roberta Ann comes across as a sharp-tongued, bitter woman. As the story develops, King and MacDuffie slowly reveal the how and why of Calley’s gift. M.B.K. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 07/ JAN 08]